Tell Me Life Is Beautiful
by JFW1415
Summary: Maximum Ride has dealt with a lot in her life. It seems like Fang is the only good thing. Where will she turn when even he turns out to have an ugly side? Will she switch Flocks? Definite Fax, possibly more pairings. A few OCs.
1. Chapter 1

_I know that I should let my writing do the talking, but you might get confused if I don't give you a quick introduction here. The characters have all aged (Max, Fang, and Iggy are 17, Nudge is 14, Gazzy is 11, and Angel is still 6), and the characters haven't done all of this travelling (such as to Antarctica, Africa, etc.) Angel is still angelic, and Fang never left. They never met some characters, such as Lissa, Sam, or Brigid, Anne, or Dylan. Other than that, you should be able to figure out other details, such as what powers they have, as you read. Basically, take my word for what I say, haha._

_Thanks to my beta-reader, Silhouette The SANVAE._

_(Maximum Ride is belongs to James Patterson, but the plot and OCs are mine.)_

_Now, without further ado, enjoy!_

**Chapter One**

I hugged my knees to my chest as I sat amongst the pine needles under the inky black sky. The rest of the Flock was a couple of yards behind me, stretched out on the ground and sleeping, all snoring softly. I knew that if I looked back at them I would see Angel – my baby Angel – sleeping with her tiny hands clenched in fists. I sighed and ran my hands roughly through my hair. How many horrors did a child need to see before she slept waiting for a fight?

A twig snapped behind me, causing me to snap my head around and see a dark shadow come closer: Fang. "You're going to wake the whole state if you keep sighing like that," he said when he was right beside me. I rolled my eyes as he laid down, propping up on his elbows casually, his shirt stretched tightly across his chest and his hair falling out of his eyes.

"So long as you don't start snoring I think the residents of Connecticut are safe," I teased back, looking down at my right-wing man. He was smirking up at me, his eyes laughing. He was still the same quiet Fang, but as we got older he had slowly begun to be more open around me, which I was grateful for. It was a lot easier to talk with someone who actually, you know, _responded_.

"Sure Max, because _I'm_ the one who snores." He shook his head, a smile on his lips. "Anyways, what are you doing way over here? It's a lot warmer with the rest of the Flock."

"I just wanted to get away for a minute. I'm starting to feel suffocated by them," I replied, looking down at my hands, guilty. The Flock was my family, but I was seventeen, and I hadn't been able to get a day to myself since forever.

"Yeah, you'd think Gazzy would have out-grown that by now…"

I laughed quietly, careful not to wake the kids, and pushed Fang's shoulder. "You know what I mean." He didn't respond for a minute, staring into the forest.

He sighed. "Yeah, I do. But I don't think either one of us is getting a day off until the world is saved."

"And Itex is gone."

"And that," he agreed. He turned to face me, leaning on one elbow, his face sincere. "Look, Max, I was thinking about that. We've been trying to save the world for what, three years now? And we haven't been able to destroy a single Itex building."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," I retorted, crossing my arms. "It hasn't exactly been easy."

"That's not what I meant, Max," he continued, ignoring my glare. "We haven't been able to defeat Itex, but maybe Itex isn't the problem."

I looked over at him, surprised to see that he wasn't joking. His eyes were wide and honest, boring into mine. I let out a laugh. "Itex not the problem? It's the reason we have wings!"

"I know: they created us. But by creating us they created the things that will save the world-"

"-by destroying them," I finished for him. He shook his head, and his bangs fell back in his eyes. He shoved them out of the way, frustrated.

"Max, just think about it. They do a ton of terrible things, sure, and they need to be defeated. But maybe that will happen as a result of us saving the world."

I looked at Fang incredulously. Was he seriously suggesting that we forgot about Itex? Of course I'd love to forget all about them – if it weren't for the tiny little fact that they still continuously sent killing machines after us. Just two weeks ago Nudge broke her wrist in one of the fights, and Iggy had to set it for her in a make-shift cast. "What do you mean?" I asked.

"I mean, if we fix the corruption in the world, the destruction of Itex will naturally follow. Maybe all we need to do is change how people think."

"Yea, 'cause _that_ will be so easy. There are only, what, six billion people in the world? A billion a day and then we'll be done in a week, and even have a day to rest," I replied sarcastically.

He ignored my sarcasm. "It's a domino effect, right? Help a little old lady across the street, and she'll give a homeless man a dollar, and he'll rescue a cat from the tree, and-"

"-and Itex will be destroyed? I'm sorry Fang, but I'm not seeing the connection here."

He sighed heavily and pushed himself up, standing tall above me. "Look Max, I know it's hard to think that anything other than defeating Itex can change the world, but there's a lot of evil around, and we can stop it. And if we do, then maybe things will be all right. If we do, maybe…" He stopped and shook his head, closing his eyes and turning away from me. My chest squeezed tightly and I moved to get up as well, but he spoke quietly with his back still turned, stopping me.

"It's fine, Max. I'm just sick of living on the run is all. I always thought that we'd have a home by now, and that you and I could be together." I looked up at him in shock at these words, but he continued as if he hadn't said anything important. "I was just being stupid. No one ever wins the heroine until the battle is won, and at this rate the battle is never going to end."

"Fang…" I had never thought he still thought of me that way. Ever since that first kiss he hadn't made another move towards anything other than friendship, though sometimes I could see that he was working hard to hold himself back. Did he really think that after saving the world things would become normal? That we could be actual teenagers? I couldn't see how we could ever be anything more than Mom and Dad to a bunch of misfit kids. A life after that… well, I had always assumed that any life after that would be spent six feet under.

"Get some sleep, Max. I'll take my watch early."

I stared after him silently as he headed back over to the rest of the Flock, carefully stepping over Iggy and Gazzy and sitting down where I wouldn't be able to talk to him without waking everyone else as well. He quickly faded into the shadows, his black clothes and hair blending in with the dark night. I fell back against the ground and brought my palms to my eyes, confused beyond belief. It seemed impossible to think that anything but destroying Itex could save the world, or that Fang and I could… No. It was impossible.

As I began to drift to sleep, I heard Fang take a deep, strained breath, and I turned my head away from the sound.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

The next morning I woke up and immediately felt the cold attack me. It was only November, but it was already becoming difficult to sleep all night out in the open with only a t-shirt on. I got up and quickly rubbed my arms, trying to get blood flowing.

"Everyone up!" I called out, walking over to the others and gently kicking them awake. They all jerked up, instantly alert, then fell back to the ground when they realized it was only me. Fang stood off to the side, looking out into the forest surrounding the clearing we had slept in. I bit my lip, wondering what it would be like between us now.

"Come on Max, the sun hasn't even risen yet!" Nudge complained, yawning loudly. She rubbed her eyes, slowly sitting up.

"It's risen, the trees are just hiding it," I argued, pulling a granola bar out of Iggy's backpack.

Iggy grabbed his backpack from me, yawning as well. "Well, I think that we shouldn't get up until we see it over our heads," he reasoned. He tilted his head thoughtfully, then added, "Actually, maybe not until _I _can see it over my head." He nodded. "Yepp, that sounds good. 'Night Max!" He went to lie back down and I laughed at him, kicking him gently in the side.

"If we wait for that, we'll never finish our plan."

"And what exactly is our plan?" asked Gazzy skeptically, stretching. I held back a laugh at his face; he was trying to look serious and worldly, but there was dirt streaked across his cheeks and into his hair, making him look more like eight years old than eleven.

"She's winging it – you know that," replied Angel happily, the only one who was really awake. I laughed and ruffled her curls.

"That's right." I looked over at Fang, who still hadn't moved, as Iggy passed out some food. "Hey, Fang! Come get some of the grub before we eat it all." My voice was light, but when he turned around I could see that he hadn't forgotten last night. His eyes met mine for a moment, and then he emptied his face of all emotion, walking over to us swiftly and sitting down with everyone. Angel's face lit up, and she quickly crawled onto his lap, crumbs from her granola bar falling onto his black shirt.

"Well, if we don't have a plan, might I make a suggestion?" asked Iggy. I rolled my eyes, knowing what was coming. He had been slightly girl crazy lately, and took every opportunity possible to mingle with normal kids.

"I think we all know what your suggestion will be," replied Nudge shortly. I looked over at her, surprised. She was sitting with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face. She turned her head away, indignant.

Iggy cleared his throat awkwardly. "Uh, I was just gonna say that we should… buy some sweatshirts. It's getting really cold out lately."

Gazzy, completely oblivious to the sudden tension between Iggy and Nudge, nodded eagerly at this. "And we should stay at a hotel tonight, too! It's supposed to get really cold."

I opened my mouth to object, but Fang cut me off. "We should," he said, looking out into the forest as he played absentmindedly with Angel's blonde curls. I stared at him for a moment, willing him to look at me. He didn't. I shook my head and stood up; it was leader time.

"All right, it is getting cold. We can fly up to Vermont today and buy some sweatshirts up there, and then we'll get a motel for the night. Let's go!" The Flock all stood up and began gathering loose granola bar wrappers, quickly getting everything together. I walked over to Nudge, who was sitting slightly separated from the rest, rearranging her backpack unnecessarily. "And I'll be able to talk to you on the flight there," I added to her quietly. She didn't look up, but her hands paused in their work for a moment, and I knew she had heard me.

I turned around to face my Flock. "All right guys, U and A! We can stop halfway there for some lunch," I called out, snapping out my wings. In front of me, Fang did the same, grinning slightly at the scowl on my face. His wings had continued to grow over the years, and his once fourteen foot span was now seventeen feet, while mine remained the same. He had also grown in height, and now he and Iggy were matched.

"Sure thing Max," he said, his voice teasing. He jumped into the air and pumped down hard with his wings, quickly rising above the trees. "But I'll have to go slow – I don't know if you'll be able to keep up with those tiny wings of yours."

I narrowed my eyes and jumped into the air. "It's on," I muttered, my voice deadly. He just grinned, turning around swiftly and flying north when he saw the rest of the Flock get in the air.

I chased after him, turning my head to call out to Iggy, "You're in charge while I beat Fang's bird-butt!" I heard laughter from the rest of the Flock as I zoomed forward, following Fang's retreating figure, until the wind took over and all I could hear was it whooshing past my ears.

I flew swiftly, gaining on Fang with ease thanks to my super speed. Fang was fast, but I was still faster. I zipped past him, laughing at the look of surprise on his face. "Hey, stop cheating!" he yelled out after me, laughing and flying faster to catch up. I slowed down to let him.

"Says the boy who got a head start!" I yelled back over my shoulder. I closed my eyes and rejoiced in the feel of the wind flying past me, grateful for Fang's distraction. I hated it when things became awkward between us, but he knew that flying always eased my mind.

"Land over there!" Fang called out, gesturing down at a field below us. I glanced back at where the Flock were, but they were far off – I could hardly see them even with my raptor vision.

"All right, just for a minute," I agreed, tucking my wings in and dive-bombing to the ground. I could hear Fang doing the same beside me.

Unfortunately, my landing wasn't exactly as… graceful as it could have been. Basically, I was too busy watching Fang show off and I landed on a bunch of rocks, successfully skinning my knee and ripping the holes on the back of my shirt wider until they were one, exposing my entire back. Not my best moment.

I opened my eyes to see a brilliant blue, which quickly switched to black as Fang's face appeared above me. His eyes were bright, and he was obviously holding back laughter. "Smooth move," he said, grinning down at me. I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just help me up, will you?" I asked, sticking my hand out to him. He grabbed my scuffed hand, pulling me up to him. The laughter faded from his eyes when he felt my hand.

"Are you okay?" he asked, quickly turning my hand over in his and examining it. I rolled my eyes again. Leave it to Fang to laugh at my tumbling out of the sky and then worry over a little scrape.

"I'm fine," I told him, pulling my hand out of his. "I'm more worried about _this_ than a little cut." I turned around, showing him my ripped shirt, which was starting to fall off of my shoulders. "No way I can fly back in-"

A loud _bang _cut me off, and I snapped my head around to see a bullet zoom through the air across the field. Fang grabbed my arm and pulled me slightly behind him, his eyes darting around the field for the source of the gunshot. There was a muffled sound as something hit the ground, and I crouched down, ready to fight. About fifty yards away, a figure slipped out of the forest and entered the other side of the field.

It was a hunter.

I sighed a breath of relief, but Fang's eyes widened at the sight. "What?" I asked, confused. "It's just a man – no big deal." But Fang grabbed my wrist and pulled me to the back corner of the field where there were several large rocks. He pushed me into the ground, successfully giving me my second mouthful of dirt for the day, and crouched down beside me.

"Fang, what are you doing?" I demanded, trying to stand up. He had his hand wrapped around my wrist in a death grip, leaving me with no choice but to sit there beside him. He waited for a minute, listening, then turned to face me. I jutted my jaw out, waiting for an answer, when I heard the gunshot again from behind us.

"Gotcha!" a loud, drunken voice called out, echoing slightly in the expanse of the field. I creased my forehead, confused, as I heard another _thump_, louder this time. Fang glanced over his shoulder, and I leaned over him to get a better view.

The field we had landed in was full of dead birds, and this man was shooting more down, an empty beer bottle in his back jean pocket. He wore a plaid shirt that was buttoned incorrectly, showing his stained white shirt beneath, and had a scruffy gray beard. He was obviously drunk, killing every bird in sight. And by the looks of the rotting birds on the ground, it was a favorite hobby of his.

I ground my jaw, beyond angry. He was killing birds, and just for the fun of it. My blood boiled as I heard another bird squeal before falling to the ground, now understanding the sound I had ignored. This was personal. Every kick he aimed at the killed birds, every shot he fired – it was like he was hitting my Flock.

I suddenly realized that my Flock – my real Flock – would soon be flying over this very field, where the drunk man was ready to kill anything with wings. I looked at Fang, worry clear on my face, but he had already thought of it. "Relax – I saw them turn east when they heard the gunshots. They're fine." I nodded, but couldn't help looking back over my shoulder where the other birds were being killed.

"But he's not," I muttered, pushing myself off the ground, ready to march into the field and beat the man into next month.

"Max!" Fang whispered, grabbing me around the waist and holding me back. "Leave it!"

I whipped around to face him, my face set and cold. "Leave it? You're the one who said we need to make a difference one person at a time. Well, I'm starting with this person!"

"That's not what I meant, Max," Fang muttered, glancing over the rock at the hunter. "He's already killed the birds, we can't help here."

"I can make it so he never kills anything else," I threatened.

"Max, birds aren't humans. It's not a huge deal."

"We're birds!" He grimaced at how loud I was, and held me tighter as I struggled in his grip.

"It's different; we're mainly human. But come on. You think anything you say will stop him?"

"It's more of what my fist will say that will stop him," I replied, glaring at him. I yanked away from him hard, and I saw him grimace as his shoulders got pulled. He leaned down and whispered sharply in my ear, his breath hot against my skin:

"Max, your shirt is ripped open. He takes one look at those wings and he'll either shoot you like an average bird or shut you up in some museum. You really think I'm going to stand by and let that happen?" I tried to ignore him, but he didn't stop. He sighed and continued, his voice soft. "Max, I can't let you do something so stupid. I can't stand to see you hurt." At this, I relaxed against his grip. I hated not doing anything, but he was right. If my wings were hidden, maybe I could do something, but the exposure wasn't worth it. I looked over the rock and saw the man twisting the necks of the fallen birds, tossing the unsatisfactory ones off to the side for the vultures, and closed my eyes and hid my face against Fang. He stiffened beneath me, then raised him hand to the back of my head, holding me against him gently.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

When Fang and I rejoined the Flock, we gave a simple story of what happened: I tripped and ripped my shirt, and we had to hide from the hunter for a bit. I preferred not to tell everyone how I had managed to trip while doing something I had doing practically my whole life, but as I had to borrow Fang's shirt for the rest of the flight, I had no choice. Fang certainly seemed happy with this; he was smirking as he pulled his spare shirt over his head.

I didn't tell the rest of the Flock about my reaction to the birds being killed. I was still the leader; I was supposed to be invincible. And if I wasn't, I certainly wasn't supposed to let something as minor as a human break me. But things were piling up, and I found myself relying on Fang more and more when we were alone.

We landed in Massachusetts around one in the afternoon, and the kids were all hungry. I grabbed Iggy's bag and began rummaging through it, trying to forage together a meal for six hungry bird-kids. We were in the back parking lot of a rather deserted building, the low hanging trees giving us coverage from the cruel sun we had just flown under. Despite the cold, I could see my skin turning slightly pink.

"Max," Iggy began, and I rolled my eyes, waiting for one of Iggy's speeches about how we should take advantage of the credit card and eat out more often; code for him wanting to eat where the human girls were. I looked up from the backpack and waited expectantly. He paused, shot an unseeing glance in Nudge's direction, and bit his lip. "Uh, I think you need to put some sunscreen on," he finished lamely.

"Considering the fact that you're _blind_, that's a rather poor cover-up," snapped Nudge. Fang quickly stepped in, stopping the two teens before Nudge killed Iggy with her glare.

"Let's just go eat up there, Max," Fang said, nodding towards the building we had landed behind. "It looks pretty quiet, and it'll be a nice change from granola bars."

I sighed, but as I had only found four granola bars left, I had to give in. It was barely enough for _one_ of us, let alone six. "All right. But we need to go shopping tonight, 'cause we can't always be doing this."

Nudge pouted at my response, but then we all heard her stomach grumble, ruining her defiance. She sighed. "Fine," she agreed, grabbing Angel's hand and walking up to the building. I looked at Fang and raised my eyebrows, but he simply shrugged back and followed the girls.

The building was actually a small diner, so the Flock and I all quickly grabbed seats at the counter, Gazzy spinning on his stool. A teenage girl came over to us, a pencil tucked behind her frazzled hair and large bags under her eyes.

"What would you like?" she asked, her voice soft. I pulled my eyes away from the menu written in big chalk letters above her head to look at her, and my mind immediately returned to Fang's words from the night before. If any girl needed help, this girl certainly did. I felt Fang's eyes on me; he saw it too.

"I'll have two of the Hungry Man specials," Gazzy said, licking his lips in anticipation. "And can I have extra bacon with that?" I grimaced, waiting for the inevitable reaction from the waitress, but she simply took her pencil and scrawled out his order.

"Anything to drink?" she asked, her voice impassive.

"Mmm, yeah, how about a chocolate shake? Or maybe a vanilla one? Oh, or strawberry!" Gazzy replied, his eyes wide as he stared up at the menu. I sighed.

"He'll have a water," I told her, and Gazzy groaned. "Gaz, no complaining; you do not need the extra sugar, trust me." The rest of the Flock ordered, and the waitress never faltered. I did, though, when Nudge only ordered two pancakes and a water.

I looked over at her; she was sitting next to Fang in the farthest spot from Iggy she could manage, staring down at her hands, defeated. I wanted to go over to her and try to comfort her, but with our hearing Iggy would no doubt overhear. I sighed. She was fourteen now, the same age I was when all this saving the world stuff began, and when I first kissed Fang. She should have been in a normal school where she could gossip with her friends about how cute the boys were, not stuck on some wild goose chase around the country.

After waiting twenty minutes for our meals, the waitress reappeared with her arms loaded with plates. "Yum!" Gazzy said, jumping in his seat and grabbing his utensils. I rolled my eyes at his excitement; all guys were the same about food, wings or no wings. Still, I couldn't ignore the deep rumbling sound coming from my stomach, and turned my eyes eagerly to the waitress.

Unfortunately, it seemed like the universe did not want to appease my stomach. Right as the waitress was backing out of the swinging door that led to the kitchen, the another waiter walked by, slamming into her and causing all of our food – the delicious, hot, mouth-watering food – to fall to the ground, clattering and rolling everywhere. I groaned.

"Idiot!" the waiter yelled, pushing her aside roughly as she clung to him to regain her balance. "Watch where you're going!" She fell to the ground at his feet and began piling the ruined food, her eyes downcast.

"An apology would be more like it," I heard Fang growl to my right. I glanced over at him, inwardly groaning. His "save-the-world-one-person-at-a-time" thing was really going to hurt us.

"Hey mister, save it," the waiter said, glaring at Fang. The waitress on the ground paused in her work, refusing to look up at the imminent fight above her head. "This doesn't concern you."

"I think it does," Fang replied. "Now are we gonna do this the easy way, or the hard way?" He stood up from his stool, letting his impressive height and strong build stress his point.

"Fang," I hissed. "Let it go!" The kids were all looking down at their hands, hesitant to get involved, and the diner was silent as everyone waited in anticipation for what was about to happen.

The waiter continued to stare at Fang, his muscles clenched, then finally gave him. "Sorry," he spat at the waitress. He rolled his eyes at Fang and turned away to go into the kitchen, attempting to slam the swinging door behind him. I grabbed Fang's arm, stopping him before he could follow.

"He apologized," I muttered. "Leave it."

Fang glanced down at the ground, where the waitress was once again hurrying to clean up the mess. "Fine. Let's go." He turned and quickly walked out of the diner, glaring at anyone whose gaze remained on him. People quickly returned to eating, pointedly looking away from him.

I followed Fang out of the diner, listening to make sure the rest of the Flock followed suit. "What was that about," I demanded as I joined him in the parking lot, but he ignored me and looked over my head to the rest of the Flock.

"Max and Nudge can go get us all sweatshirts," he announced, completely disregarding my flabbergasted expression. "I'll take Igsgy, Gazzy, and Angel to buy some food. Meet at the lake a mile north from here in an hour and we'll continue to Vermont."

My first instinct was to protest – I was leader here, not him – but his plan made sense, so I reluctantly agreed. "Fine," I agreed. "See you guys in an hour. Nudge, let's go. I saw a store a little ways from here that we can walk to."


End file.
